Conventionally, storage apparatuses or storage elements capable of recording and storing various data or audio/images etc. have been internally mounted in equipment cases of personal computers etc. or have been capable of being arbitrarily detached (or attached) to equipment cases.
In a case where, for example, flexible disc devices etc. are taken as external storage apparatuses capable of being freely removed from the equipment, attaching and removing is possible with one movement, and various data is possible to record and store in a manner appropriately corresponding to the purpose and object etc. This has the substantial advantage that arrangement etc. can be carried out in a straightforward manner.
However, in the case of a flexible disc, with respect to recording various data, not only is reliability insufficient, but access time is also slow. Further, when apparatuses are made more compact in accordance with the tendency to develop miniaturized, the surface area of the storage medium inevitably becomes smaller and storage capacity is reduced, with this placing limits on achieving miniaturization with a high-capacity.
On the other hand, when semiconductor memory is used as an external storage apparatus, there is the advantage that it is possible to resolve problems with flexible discs such as problems with the reliability of recording and storing of various data and the access time being slow.
The card-type apparatus disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent application Publication No. Hei. 6-312593 is well known as an external storage apparatus using semiconductor memory of the related art. However, with card-type external storage apparatuses, this is detrimental to the versatility of drive devices reading and writing data stored in this storage apparatuses.
The present applicant has therefore formerly proposed an external storage apparatus utilized through insertion in a USB (Universal Serial Bus) port etc. of a personal computer (Japanese Patent Application No. 2002-187534).
This external storage apparatus does not require a dedicated drive device and is capable of storing and reading data simply through insertion in a USB port typically provided at a personal computer. A configuration for the above external storage apparatus is shown in FIG. 29 to FIG. 31.
An external storage apparatus 1 of the related art is configured from a combination of four components of a case 2 made of synthetic resin, a cap 4, a substrate holder 5, and a memory substrate 6, so as to be small and lightweight. In this product, the case 2, substrate holder 5 and memory substrate 6 are integrally fixed, and the cap 4 is freely attachable and detachable to and from the substrate holder 5.
Semiconductor memory is mounted as a storage element at the memory substrate 6, and is integrally formed with the case 2 via the substrate holder 5.
A connector 3 conforming to the USB standard is fitted at one edge of the memory substrate 6 so as to project outwards from the substrate holder 5. The cap 4 is installed at the substrate holder 5 with the purpose of protecting the connector 3 when the external storage apparatus 1 is not in use.
On the other hand, the inappropriate outflow or theft of data files stored in a computer etc. accompanying the development of computer systems in recent years is becoming a large problem in society. As a result, in order to prevent utilization of the data by people other than the owner of the data, the addition of data file encryption and password authentication technology, and more recently the introduction of technology limiting the access of people other than the owner by storing physical characteristics such as fingerprints or voiceprints of the data owner, has started.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2000-298529 discloses a computer system implementing fingerprint authentication of users in the event of using a computer. Further, Japanese Patent No. 3338417 discloses an electronic data storage medium equipped with a fingerprint authentication function for verifying whether or not the authority to access data files stored on a memory device is held.
If a fingerprint authentication function is added to the USB-connected external storage apparatus of the aforementioned configuration, it is possible to further improve the security function for the stored data. In this case, it is necessary to ensure ease of handling and durability in the event of an authentication operation while maintaining the original features of being small and lightweight when a fingerprint authentication function is added to the external storage apparatus 1.
The fingerprint authentication operation is carried out by the user putting their finger on an image sensor (imager) for authentication but it is necessary for the configuration to be such that a sensing surface of an image sensor is arranged in close proximity to a casing surface so that appropriate authentication processing can be carried out in a stable manner. In this case, when a special mounting structure is adopted to arrange the image sensor at a casing surface section, complexity of the device structure, increased weight and thickness, and increases in cost due to an increase in the number of parts is invited. There are therefore demands for a configuration where an image sensor can be arranged at a casing surface section while using a simple configuration.
Further, in addition to ensuring reliability and durability of the external storage apparatus over long periods, it is also necessary to protect a memory substrate within the casing from stress incurred during fingerprint authentication operations. To this end, a casing structure capable of ensuring that pressure applied during authentication operations is received by the whole of the casing so as to alleviate the load on the memory substrate is desired.
The present invention provides a reliable, durable external storage apparatus capable of performing appropriate, stable fingerprint authentication processing while avoiding increased complexity of structure and increases in weight and thickness.